5Chapter 2
Anna sat down to dinner after her first day of classes. She was exhausted, physically and emotionally. She was sitting next to Zillah who had followed her around all day. Anna didn't have a problem with Zillah, but she overwhelmed with how much she talked. Anna just wasn't that outgoing. Zillah stopped talking when the food came out. She ate the same way she talked.
Anna wasn't very hungry, so she looked around at everyone else. It was intimidating how many students there were. She looked down the Slytherin table and almost jumped out of her seat when she saw Tom staring right at her. He didn't look away either like most did when they were caught staring. Anna couldn't look away either. There was something strange about this boy and she wasn't sure if she was scared or intrigued. Tom was the first to look away. He turned to talk to the boy sitting next to him and then continued eating. Anna awkwardly turned back to her plate and tried eating some more, but she just didn't have the appetite. She waited for Zillah to finish eating and walked back with her. When they got to the common room Anna told her she was tired and headed off to bed.
Anna really was tired, but as soon as she laid down on her bed she felt wide awake. Her head was buzzing with thoughts of the day. Anna had never been good with people, but she had made a friend already. That was good. Maybe this wouldn't be a disaster; maybe this would be a good thing.
The day was still. The water in the lake was calm, the wind wasn't blowing, and there were very little clouds in the sky. Most importantly, everyone had stopped panicking. The chamber disaster was over.
Anna was sitting in the courtyard with Zillah. Anna was sitting on a bench doing her homework. Zillah was sitting on the ground leaning up against the bench checking out boys.
"You know Anna you really need a boyfriend. I think I'll find you one." Zillah said as she smiled at a passing Ravenclaw boy.
"Why do I need a boyfriend?"
"Because you don't have one, duh."
Anna rolled her eyes.
"Don't roll your eyes at me."
"You can't see me, how do you know if I'm rolling my eyes?"
"You always roll your eyes." Zillah turned around to look at Anna. "I don't mean to be rude, but why are you hanging out with me? I mean we rarely hang out, and I wouldn't question it normally, but the other day you sat by me at breakfast instead of with Tom. Is something going on?"
"Not really. I guess I just needed a change of pace."
"How come Tom's not your boyfriend?"
"What?" Anna was caught completely off guard and she could feel her cheeks turning red. "We're friends. Why would you even say that?"
Zillah laughed. "You're blushing. You totally like him!"
"I do not!" Anna said, her cheeks still not cooling down.
"Then let me find you a boyfriend."
"I don't want a boyfriend."
"Unless it's Tom." Zillah said smirking.
"No."
"I won't believe you unless you let me find you a boyfriend."
Anna rolled her eyes, so Zillah raised her eyebrows. "Fine."
Zillah smiled and turned back around to admire the male student body.
After a week at Hogwarts Anna was finally starting to calm down and feel at home. Zillah was still following her around, but she had found other friends and wasn't around as much. Anna had finally had a real conversation with Tom on their way to one of their classes. She found out that he was an orphan and didn't know he was a wizard until just recently. Tom had learned that Anna spent most of her time alone because her parents were always gone and she didn't get to meet a lot of people. When they entered the classroom, however, it went back to only shy, silent glances.
Anna and Tom sat by each other during most meals, but they didn't talk much. Still, it was like a silent agreement they had and it was nice to know they didn't have to sit alone. Sometimes they sat together during class, but they still hadn't talked much.
It was late Sunday night and Anna was sitting alone in the common room reading when Tom sat down next to her. She jumped when he sat down. She hadn't seen him come in and hadn't heard the door open or footsteps.
"Sorry, did I scare you?" Tom asked
"A little."
"What are you reading?"
Anna felt the blood rush to her cheeks as she answered, "One of my mom's romances. I kind of stole it from her."
"Oh. Do you mind if I sit here with you? I can't seem to fall asleep."
"Sure. I mean I can't really tell you you can't sit on the couch."
Tom laughed. "You can if you want."
"Can I ask you a question?" Tom nodded. "Why don't you talk to me? The first day I thought you just didn't talk, but I see you with other kids and your very eloquent, but you sit by me all the time and never talk to me."
"I didn't think you liked to talk. You don't talk much to anyone and sometimes you look kind of terrified. I think it's nice though, not having to talk to keep from feeling awkward. I feel oddly comfortable around you."
Anna was sure her cheeks were red now.
"You can keep reading your book now. I won't bother you. I'll just sit here quietly."
She did so, and to her surprise it wasn't awkward. At first she could tell he was looking at her, but she wasn't uncomfortable. She just sat there reading for about half and hour until her eyes hurt and she couldn't concentrate anymore. She set the book on her lap and yawned. She looked over at Tom who was now watching the fireplace. She opened her mouth to tell him that she was going to bed, but Tom spoke first.
Still looking at the fire he said, "Are you afraid of me?"
"No."
"At the orphanage everyone was afraid of me. I don't think many people here are."
"Because you fit in here. You're a wizard, like everyone else."
Tom turned to look at her now. "I don't want to be like everyone else." The words were emotional, but his face was empty of emotion.
"You're not. I only meant you're the same in that you can do magic, but you're top of the class and we're only one week in. You're really talented Tom."
Tom nodded his head once and then stood up. "I think it's time I go back to bed."
"Yeah, I'm pretty tired too."
Anna watched Tom turn and walk off. He was out of sight when she stood up and went to her own bed.
"Rodger Morde"
"What?" Anna was sitting in the common room doing homework when Zillah came up to her.
"Rodger Morde, that's who I'm setting you up with."
"He's a year younger and in Hufflepuff."
"So. He's way buff and has dimples, and most importantly he's into you."
"How do you know? Did you ask him?"
"Yes, and I told him you were interested. So you have a date next Friday when we go to Hogsmeade. He said he'll meet you outside Potions class."
"Zillah!"
"You said I could find you a boyfriend, so you're going on this date." She walked away before Anna could protest.
The next Friday Anna headed towards Potions. Tom saw her and ran up to her. "So, I thought of some really good pranks to pull on the first years last night."
Anna stopped and turned to Tom. "I can't hang out today. Zillah set me up on a date. She told him I would go without even asking me so I kind of have to."
"A date?" Anna nodded. "With who?"
"Rodger Morde."
Tom was silent for a minute and Anna could tell he was thinking hard about something. Then he smiled, which turned into a smirk.
"Well have fun." he said and quickly turned and walked off.
Weird. Anna thought. When she got to Potions she saw Rodger standing there looking far too happy.
"Hi." Anna said feeling awkward.
"Hey."
Anna tried not to laugh; she could tell he was trying to be smooth. "So I guess we should go."
"Sure thing."
Again Anna had to fight herself to keep from laughing. They walked through the halls in silence and Anna could feel him staring at her. When they were finally in Hogsmeade Rodger started talking. He talked almost as much as Zillah and Anna tried to pretend she was interested. The truth was he was corny and immature. He had tried to hold her hand twice, but she pulled away both times. Apparently his ego was so big that he still thought she was into him. He tried to walk her all the way back to the Slytherin common room, but he was given quite a few dirty looks that scared him off. He nervously said "goodbye" and "see you later" before walking as fast as he could without running.
As soon as Anna entered the common room Zillah ran up to her, anxious for the dirty details.
"How'd it go?" She asked.
"I don't want to do that again."
"So it went bad?"
"He's immature, and couldn't even walk me all the way here 'cause he got scared."
Zillah laughed. "Did he really?" Anna nodded and Zillah laughed harder. "I think you should hang out again."
"Why? I didn't have any fun."
"You barely spent any time with him. I think you guys would look so good together."
"Whatever. Can you get out of the way? I have to go to the bathroom."
It was the first Quidditch game of the year and it was between Slytherin and Hufflepuff. Anna started walking towards the field alone, but after a while Tom caught up with her and they walked there together in silence. They sat down together and waited for the game to start. Anna and Tom cheered when Slytherin got points, but they didn't yell or boo or get so excited that they stood up. Tom was of course fascinated because he had never seen Quidditch before and Anna had to explain some things to him. They walked back to the castle together and talked a little bit about the game, but not like everyone else did.
It was dinner time when they got back to the castle. They sat next to each other like they usually did. Most people sat in the same spots everyday. The Slytherin table was buzzing with excitement over the win. Anna was starting to feel overwhelmed. Tom could see the stress on her face so he put his hand on her shoulder. It was an awkward gesture and he removed his hand immediately, but Anna felt calmer nonetheless.
Anna was sitting at the breakfast table when Rodger walked up to her. He didn't say anything so Anna tried to pretend he wasn't there, but he tapped her on the shoulder and she had to turn around.
"Hi." he said.
"Hi."
"So I was wondering if you wanted to hang out with me down by the lake later, um, later tonight."
"I kind of have a lot of homework. I procrastinated."
Rodger obviously didn't understand what Anna was trying to say because he said, "oh no problem. We can hang tomorrow then, after dinner." He smiled and walked off before Anna could say "no".
She turned back to her plate and saw Zillah wink at her. Anna rolled her eyes and picked up her fork.
Tom laughed. "You can't say 'no' can you?"
"Of course I can."
"Then why didn't you?"
"How do you know I wanted to? I do have a lot of homework, and I want to hang out by the lake tomorrow." She didn't know why she said it, and she didn't know why the look on Tom's face hurt her.